The Differences Between Phone and In-Person Interviews
Phone interviews and in-person interviews are both very common during the job search process. Often, you are asked to undergo a phone interview first before coming in for an in-person interview. This means your phone interview may be your best and only chance to make a great impression and move on to the next phase in the hiring process.
While you want to come across as competent, capable and professional on phone and in-person interviews, the process of preparing for these interviews can be very different. Some tips to help you get ready include the following:
- Phone interviews make it harder to read body language. You will be forced to focus more on tone to get an idea of whether a phone interview is going well or not. During an in-person interview, watch your interviewer for signs of interest or boredom. For a phone interview, you can listen for clues, but this is more challenging. If you aren’t sure if you’ve given a satisfactory answer to a question over the phone, don’t be afraid to ask if you’ve completely answered the query.
- During phone interviews, you can have your resume and job application in front of you. You can’t do this in an in-person interview. Being able to quickly reference these documents can help you to stay focused on the points you want to make and can assist you with formulating answers to questions. In an in-person interview, you’ll need to be ready to draw from this information off the top of your head, so you may want to do more practice questions.
- Smiling is key for both. While you want to come across as engaged and upbeat in an in-person interview, it is also important to smile when you are doing a phone interview. The interviewer cannot see you, but your emotion can come across in your voice.
These are just a few key tips to remember when preparing for a phone or in-person job interview. SmartTalent can help job seekers in Kirkland, Fife, Renton, Lacey, Lynwood, Everett and surrounding areas to land interviews with employers at top companies where you can show off your interview skills. Contact us today to learn more.
